dairy free

It’s been a little over a week since I ditched the dairy to see how it affected my energy/health. I didn’t realize how many foods dairy products were in. I am human, and I did have some slip ups . . . Most of them where honest mistakes where my awareness totally left my mind like . . .

I really made it a priority to eat healthful foods during this time so that could have also greatly attributed to these points above. So, last night I wanted to try eating some dairy . . . Just to see what happened.

At work, I had quite a few of these . . .

I felt ok at first and then . . .

- I felt my stomach working hard and bloating up FAST.

– I had a small amount of pain in my ovary which was strange.

– I felt sluggish.

– Mucus started building in my mouth/throat.

– I felt pressure in both ears which almost always means that a headache is on it’s way.

Again, this could also be a mixed bag of symptoms with the added sugar, but I really am going to take it as a sign . . .

Dairy Is No Good For Me.

While I would like to continue being dairy-free, I don’t ever want to put a label or a restriction on what I eat because I believe eating intuitively is key. However, I will have fairly strict LIMITATIONS as I have learned that my priority to Honor My Health is far more important

One of the many things I love about culinary school is that we are able to take home some food that we learn about or cook. Its a Win Win Win as it doesn’t go to waste, it saves some money at home and it allows me to challenge myself in the kitchen and come up with many uses.

One of the things we learned further about in our last class was herbs and spices. I took home a small bunch of herbs which included thyme, chives, rosemary, dill and sage.

Luckily, I almost always have a bag of potatoes on hand. I really love potatoes. They are hearty, they taste awesome and there are so many things you can do with them. Seeing as I had some herbs, I tried something new . . .

Sliced Baked Herbed Potatoes

Start out with as many potatoes as you would like to serve or eat. The sizes of mine were very different, but try to make sure they are somewhat uniform so they cook more even.

Put two wooden spoons or utensils under the potato and make sure they are 1-2 inches apart. These spoons will be your guide so you don’t cut all the way through.

Slice vertically into the potato until you hit the wood. Be very gentle and slow as you do this. Potatoes are very starchy and will make your knife sticky.

Place your potatoes in a baking dish and gently fan them out. Drizzle with melted butter (I used vegan dairy-free Earth Balance). Melt about 1tbsp butter for each potato.

Chop your herbs into a fine mince.

Then sprinkle them on the potato, push some in between the slices for optimum flavor. Sprinkle some sea salt on top as well.

Bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for about 50-60min until cooked through.

These are an awesome way to make a potato. It’s visually appealing and is almost like a cross between a baked potato and a potato chip. The herbs really make them flavorful and you can even add cheese!